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August 7, 2009

Not too long after the inception of DesignTies in January of this year, one of the first blogs I discovered was Michelle Morelan’s A Schematic Life. I was immediately drawn to her writing style, her sense of aesthetic, the interiors and design she showcased, and of course her beautiful one-of-a-kind renderings! The fact that she lived right here in the lower mainland, British Columbia… bonus!!

Recently, though, Michelle has been showcasing original and what I feel are absolutely stunning abstract paintings. I mean… I was a regular and loyal visitor of A Schematic Life, an admirer of Michelle’s designs and renderings… but now I’m just plain HOOKED! I’m hooked on Michelle Morelan… and everything she produces!!

So hooked, in fact, that I felt compelled to showcase some of Michelle’s work for Hooked on Fridays, a weekly blog party hosted by Julia from Hooked on Houses.

If you haven’t already discovered Michelle… and if you’re not already hooked on her like I am… you will be after you see what I have to share with you!

There’s a silly tale to this photo. I had met Michelle for a yummy lunch at a restaurant called Joey’s. After lunch we found ourselves in the ladies room admiring the art hanging on the walls, the fantastic granite trough sink and the overall design of the space. It really is a lovely bathroom!

Out comes my camera and I start TRYING to take photos of the space. Nothing would turn out! Then we decided we wanted to take a photo of us together. Hmmm. That involved using the timer feature!! Disaster! Finally… after several takes, I captured the one I’m sharing with you today (my hair is much lighter now – I don’t look like me!). We laughed so hard at how inept I was with my camera!! :-)

Those of you familiar with Michelle know her for her unbelievable renderings! My blog partner Kelly was VERY fortunate, recently, to win an original Michelle rendering of her living room. Using only a photograph to guide her, this is what Michelle produced:

I can’t begin to tell you how excited Kelly was to receive this special illustration!

Here’s one that really struck my fancy… Michelle travels when ever the opportunity presents itself, and this illustration is of Amsterdam.

I SOOOO want to go to Amsterdam. I’m sure it would look just like this!!

Sometimes, when Michelle sees a photo of an indoor or outdoor space on a blogger-friend’s site that she loves, she’ll surprise them by creating a beautiful rendering and posting it on A Schematic Life.

Like this one… Maria from Colour Me Happy took a trip to Provence a few years ago and stayed in this beautiful rental villa:

Another that I can’t leave out… a beautiful room designed by Patricia Gray

Finally, I can’t leave out the rendering Michelle made specially for Tobi Fairley. Tobi was recently in Vancouver and Ivan Meade from Meade Design Group hosted a brunch in honour of her, inviting many Vancouver-based bloggers – myself included! At that lovely gathering Michelle presented her with a wonderful rendering of a fantastic Tobi-designed room!

Lovely, lovely renderings!!

Now… if you’re not already hooked on the talents of Michelle, you will be after you see her creative and – in my opinion – simply stunning abstract paintings! All photos were borrowed from Michelle’s blog, A Schematic Life. Where possible, names and other information about her paintings were captured. I hope I got it right!!

I’ll say it again… I am hooked on Michelle Morelan!! Her skill, vision and talent, her ability to capture light, texture and colour in ALL her designs, her love of pure design and her commitment to the arts – all are attributes that I enormously admire!

Be sure to make your way over to Michelle’s blog, A Schematic Life, and see for yourself just how fantastic Michelle is… you’ll be hooked, too!

Thanks to Julia for hosting her weekly blog party, Hooked on Fridays. Be sure to make your way back to her blog to find out what all her partiers are hooked on, too!

And before I forget… Kelly and I host a weekly blog party of our own: Rewind Wednesdays. Take a moment to learn all about it by clicking right HERE!

17
comments:

She is very talented indeed! I love that bedroom - how the back of the headboard is a set of shelves in the middle of the room! And that dining room table looks oh so inviting. And the family room windows with that spectacular view? Swoon. I can see why you're hooked!

First, that photo of us is hilarious!! timers, mirrors, and I think I look snobby with my nose in the air...lol. You can see my double chin :)))

You should come and paint one day...CBC radio 1, a palette knife, paint, and we are off and running...it's so relaxing!!

I actually do allot of painting at Patricia's in her garage we have made into a studio, but lately, with the great weather, I have been behind my scarlet runner beans in my garden...it's fun too, and the neighbours have all come to hang out and chat!

I'm glad you enjoyed your rendering Kelly! You have a lovely room! I'm always amazed when I see the interiors of blogger's homes...there is some real talent out there!!

We should do lunch again Victoria! Too bad Kelly is in Ottawa...I would love to meet you Kelly!!

I'm just so darn flattered!! Everyone loves your blog...your passion for design and personalities are what keeps bringing me back here.

Me too. Her posts teach me something. Her comments on other blogs usually teach as well. Showing me beautiful things is one thing. Help me understand a bit about how it's done, well that what Michelle tries to do.

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Welcome to DesignTies!

DesignTies

We're two Canadian chicks who love everything about interior decorating and remodeling. We demo! We paint! We tile! And then we write all about it here on our blog.

We're also always on the lookout for pictures that will inspire us and you - beautiful rooms, unique design solutions, fun decorating ideas... it's all about making your homes and ours great places to be :-)

DesignTies is:

Kelly James
Ottawa, OntarioJAX Decor & Design

and

Victoria Lambert
New Westminster, BCEdin Interiors

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